Displaying items by tag: Auction

ARTINFO has learned that the seller of “The Pointing Man,” the great Alberto Giacometti bronze sculpture that will be offered at Christie’s New York on May 11 with an estimate in the stratospheric region of $130 million, is the reclusive New York real estate magnate Sheldon Solow. According to a knowledgeable source, Solow acquired the hand-painted Giacometti bronze from the Sidney Janis Gallery in 1970.

Sidney Janis, a storied collector in his own right and a major benefactor to the Museum of Modern Art, had acquired it privately. The sculpture was exhibited and published in the second installment of the Sidney Janis Gallery 25th Anniversary exhibition and catalogue in October 1973 with the credit line, “Sheldon Solow Collection.”

On May 21, as the star lot of its sale of American Art, Christie’s will offer "Two Puritans" by Edward Hopper (1882-1967). Painted in 1945 at the height of Hopper’s career, "Two Puritans," one of only three canvases by the artist of that year and the only one in private hands, is estimated to bring in excess of $20 million when it appears at auction for the first time this spring. The painting has been included in nearly every major exhibition and publication on the artist and, most recently was on view in Paris at the Grand Palais, where the Hopper exhibition broke attendance records, proving that the artist has arrived on an international stage.

Elizabeth Beaman, Head of American Art, states; “Edward Hopper's masterwork 'Two Puritans' can be considered at once an intimate and revealing portrait of the artist and his wife, as well as a testament to his dogged dedication to realism in the face of a changing visual world that increasingly championed abstraction.

Christie’s Magnificent Jewels sale achieved its target of $42.0 million on April 14, led by a fancy pink diamond that fetched $5.8 million, the auction house said.

The 5.29-carat bauble, of an intense purplish pink hue, sold to a buyer identified only as “U.S. trade” and came in at $1.1 million per carat.

Other diamonds fetching high prices included a pear-shaped potentially internally flawless diamond pendant of 25.49 carats, by Graff ($3.4 million) and a circular-cut fancy gray-blue diamond of 5.04 carats ($2.3 million).

The art collection of pioneering gallerist Ileana Sonnabend and her daughter goes on auction in New York next month, valued at $50 million and featuring some of the finest 20th century artists.

Auctioneers Christie's said it had acquired the Sonnabend collection and the estate of her daughter Nina Sundell, which would be offered for sale as 88 lots on May 13-14.

Christie’s announces the sale Visions of the West: American Paintings from the William I. Koch Collection, which represents the breadth of Western Art with works spanning the 19th century to the present day. The dedicated sale will take place on May 21, at noon, following Christie’s Spring sale of American Art, and will feature more than 65 paintings from Mr. Koch’s superb collection. Highlights include the most important historic artists of the genre including Thomas Moran, Frederic Remington, Henry F. Farny, William Robinson Leigh, and Philip R. Goodwin, among others. The sale also features notable examples by many of the most important contemporary Western artists, including Howard Terpning, Martin Grelle, Tom Lovell and G. Harvey, among others. Representing a wide variety of Western subjects, the sale represents an excellent opportunity for new and established collectors alike.

Lucian Freud's most famous and iconic subject will be offered as the highlight of Christie’s Post-War and Contemporary sale on May 13. "Benefits Supervisor Resting" is regarded as Freud’s ultimate tour de force, a life-size masterwork in the grand historical tradition of the female nude, painted obsessively with intense scrutiny and abiding truth.

This bold and extraordinary example of the stark power of Lucian Freud’s realism reveals his unique ability to capture the reality of the human form in all its natural force. Chosen by Freud as the cover of the definitive monograph about the artist, "Benefits Supervisor Resting" was included by the artist in every major museum exhibition devoted to Freud, including Tate Britain, London, The Museum of Modern Art, New York and the recent survey "The Facts and the Truth: Lucian Freud at the National Portrait Gallery, London."

Thirteen leading interior designers and design firms have been selected to curate rooms in the second annual Sotheby’s Designer Showhouse. Located in the auction house’s Manhattan headquarters, the Designer Showhouse will be brimming with an array of treasures, including mid century modern furniture, American studio furniture, Abstract Expressionist paintings, 18th and 19th century American antiques, European antiques, Old Master paintings, contemporary art, and much more. The Showhouse will be open to the public April 11-19, 2015, culminating in a dedicated sale on April 20, 2015.

Each space in the Designer Showhouse brings together fine and decorative arts from a variety of categories offered by Sotheby’s. In addition to reflecting each designer’s singular style, the Showhouse exemplifies the vital role that antiques and fine art play in creating dynamic contemporary interiors. According to Cullman & Kravis, the New York-based firm behind the Showhouse’s living room, “Antiques and fine art play a critical role in adding context...

Continue reading this article about the leading interior designers involved in the 2015 Sotheby's Designer Showhouse on InCollect.com.

Billionaire money manager Steven A. Cohen is selling a dense, vibrant 1961 Jean Dubuffet painting valued at $25 million, according to a person familiar with the matter.

Christie’s said it will offer Dubuffet’s “Paris Polka” at a special evening auction, “Looking Forward to the Past,” on May 11. The estimate exceeds the late French artist’s auction record of $7.4 million set in November. Cohen, 58, is the seller, said the person, who asked not to be named because the information is private.

There's always a battle going on somewhere between Sotheby's and Christie's for some piece of the art cake. But to get a sense of the biggest confrontation on the calendar, London is the place to be next weekend when the two auction houses exhibit highlights from their forthcoming New York sales of Impressionist, Modern (Monet to late Picasso) and Contemporary art (Rothko to today).

The most significant exhibit without a doubt is Picasso's eye-popping "Les Femmes d'Alger," 1955, based on a painting by Delacroix, that has a whopping $US140 million ($183 million) estimate from Christie's.

Chinese billionaire Liu Yiqian is known to set record prices at art auctions worldwide. At a Sotheby’s sale in Hong Kong on Tuesday, the Shanghai-based Liu proved himself once again.

This time, he bought a Southern Song dynasty-era (1127-1279) vase for 113.9 million Hong Kong dollars ($ 14.7 million). The price is one of the highest ever paid at an auction for a ceramic vase of that period. The crackled bluish-green artifact is part of the Guan Yao, or official ware created for the imperial court of that time.